Deterrence/Prevention

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Regular dental care can prevent epulis fissuratum. Patients who wear dentures frequently believe that they no longer require care, and, under these circumstances, dentures lose their correct fit and become the source of irritation.

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Prognosis

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With correction of the poorly fitting denture, the prognosis for epulis fissuratum is excellent.

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Patient Education

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Instruct the patient that regular dental care is necessary and that the oral tissues are changing constantly. This means that dentures are not permanent and need adjustments over time.

An epulis fissuratum in the anterior part of the mandible shows a central groove where the denture flange rests. Note the inflammatory erythema. The surface of the lesion is usually smooth as shown in the image.

The mass in the posterior part of the maxillary vestibule is associated with a full denture; however, in this patient, the mass represented a squamous cell carcinoma. The surface is more granular in appearance, although this is not always the case.

A view of a whole mount of a tissue section taken from an epulis fissuratum shows that it is essentially a fibrous hyperplasia. The central groove can be observed, and, in this patient, papillary hyperplasia is present in some areas.